Case Study for Business English

The Benefits of Case Studies

Business English and ESP (English for Specific Purposes) courses focus on issues related to
specialist subjects and slot into a curriculum of related modules and study areas. Such courses
should be designed around activities in which students have the opportunity to interact and use
language communicatively. In other words, language skills should not be taught in isolation and
separate from other academic needs, by concentrating on grammatical structures for example.
Students require language skills that are relevant to their future professional lives and
universities require courses that address these needs.

The benefits of using case studies as a learning tool are well documented. Case studies bridge the
gap between theory and practice and develop:

● critical and strategic thinking

● analytical skills
● problem solving thinking
● decision making competence
● the ability to generate ideas
● managerial skills.

Case studies are an excellent platform for improving communication skills and applying theory
to practical communication scenarios. Students enhance their abilities to present results logically
and professionally in both writing and speaking, adapt their English skills to the relevant
communication skill and select the most appropriate communication skill at the right time.
Moreover, case studies are motivating as they are interesting, stimulating, fun, pragmatic and
rewarding.

‘Case Studies for Business English’ Course and Book

‘Case Studies for Business English’ has been developed in Business English courses in the
Business Studies Faculty at the Hochschule (HSD) (University of Applied Sciences) in
Düsseldorf, Germany over the last ten years. I came to the HSD having worked on pre-sessional
Business English courses for MBA students at the University of Birmingham in the UK. Case
studies had been used extensively and I fully realized their importance in developing the skills
outlined above. It was thus my aim to integrate case studies into the undergraduate courses at the
HSD.

MBA students at Birmingham processed case study analysis largely using Harvard Business
Case Studies. Harvard cases are excellent but can be complex and many pages long. As I began
to integrate case studies into undergraduate courses, I found that students needed to work with
shorter case studies with an appropriate level of complexity so that they could practically apply
what they had already learnt in one or two semesters rather than in years of study. I therefore
began to write my own fictional case studies and develop teaching material around them. These
case studies have been dissected and rewritten using feedback from students over the years.

Now, these case studies have been published in a book that has 10 units, each with an original
case study. Each unit has exercises to develop understanding and communication of business
tools and strategy, a step-by-step guide to case study analysis and business report writing as well
as role plays and tips on developing skills for presentations and meetings. There is also an
additional reference checklist for students, a guide for exam assessment, a section of original
supplementary case study texts and an answer key.

Unit:

Students skim the text and then discuss the case study in general terms, getting an overview of
the company, its market, its products and/or services, the major player(s), the most urgent
problem, the long term issues and any additional information that may be required to understand
the case.

FUZZY COMMUNICATIONS

Fuzzy Communications owns its headquarters in London’s West End and currently has five
international affiliates. The owner and CEO is Harry Shepherd, who at the age of 35 regards
himself as the pioneer in cloud-based communications. 6,000 employees worldwide work in
open space offices that are modern and tastefully decorated, enjoying a range of perks including
free meals, a state-of-the-art training academy, and salaries that are above the industry average.

Harry Shepherd always showed signs of being a budding entrepreneur. He began to wash cars for
money in his neighborhood when he was just nine years old and was managing a team of friends
who washed cars by the age of 12. At 13, he was named “One of Britain’s outstanding young
talents who will go places”. By the age of 19, Harry had expanded his car washing business to
five cities in the UK. He then sold it to the Herald Group for £1.5 million, making him a
millionaire before the age of 20.

His next decision was to take an extended tour around the United States. He has never regretted
this decision and often fondly describes this “life-changing experience” in interviews.
Eventually, Harry found himself on the West Coast, spending a few days exploring Silicon
Valley. A few days became 10 months. During this period, Harry visited and worked at several
companies, periodically dropping into classes at Stanford University. He came back to the UK
feeling inspired, recharged, and determined to establish the UK’s own version of Silicon Valley.

The first action Harry took on his return to the UK was to register to study computer science
engineering. Fast-tracking his studies, he finished his M.Sc. within three years. Professor J.E.
Watkin stated that Harry’s thesis was one of the most original pieces of work he had seen in 30
years of teaching. At the same time, Harry used his remaining capital to start Fuzzy
Communications with just ten employees, with the aim of injecting the kind of start-up
risk-taking culture he had experienced in the States.

Harry plowed back profits into the company as it expanded. The London office ballooned from
five employees to 850 in just the first nine months. International expansion - Oslo, Madrid,
Shanghai, Melbourne and New York - followed in the next four years. Harry envisages
expanding to Moscow, Berlin and Auckland in the near future but is looking for a bank to back
his plans. Despite his celebrity profile, Harry has not yet found a bank that is willing to make the
investment he requires and is frustrated that his plans are being hindered. He has found major
banks to be cautious and conservative.

Two years ago, a team of seven engineers resigned from the company in the same month. A few
weeks later, Harry was furious when he found out that they had been headhunted by Fuzzy’s
biggest competitor Maxihard, and were working at Maxihard’s headquarters on a project that he
felt belonged to Fuzzy, one which he had initiated. Harry accused his former employees of
betrayal on various blogs and in media interviews. Lawyers strongly advised him not to take
legal action, but a lengthy and costly legal battle in both the British and American courts
followed. Finally, Maxihard paid Fuzzy a small compensation package as a “goodwill gesture,”
which did not even cover the incurred legal costs.

Managing Directors at each of the international affiliates report directly to the CEO. The
company works with a matrix structure below the levels of CEO and MD, and employees are
encouraged to work at their clients’ premises whenever possible. The average age of employees
is currently between 22 and 33, and employees usually hand in their notice after an average of
just 42 months’ service. HR conducts exit interviews with employees leaving the company.
Excerpts from recent interviews include these sample statements:

“Open communication and the sharing of ideas don’t always happen, and it’s not actually that
cool working in open space offices. It’s difficult to concentrate and to talk to customers when
there is noise all around. Having down-time and private space in order to come up with creative
ideas is actually almost impossible.”

“The salaries are indeed generous, but London is becoming impossible. My plan when I joined
Fuzzy was to buy a house. Within three years, I found that real estate prices in London had
doubled, and the bank wouldn’t even give me a mortgage for a modest one-bedroom apartment. I
had to move to another company in another city at a slightly lower salary so that I could afford to
buy a home. . ”

“I discussed various possibilities for personal and career development when I was recruited - for
example, the chance for international job rotation and maybe to learn a new language. I found the
offer to be empty promises, and I made just one trip to New York in 2 years.”

“To be honest, Harry is quite controlling. He just pushes his ideas through. It can be inspiring,
but it’s also exhausting.”

Harry feels he is treading water and that his original visions for Fuzzy have disappeared. He even
has thoughts of selling Fuzzy so that he can start again. His sessions with his private business
coach have convinced him, though, that he should not take this step too hastily. He has thus
decided that he would like to reassess first, to get an external view of his company and reshape
his visions for Fuzzy. He has hired you as an external consultant to write a preliminary report.

Fuzzy Communications Case Study Text - Copyrighted Material

More detailed analysis follows as the students brainstorm the problems they can recognise at
Fuzzy Communications. This random list of problems is then organized by categorizing the
problems into smaller groups and allocating the problems to these groups. Students then have the
basic structure that enables them to write the problem analysis section in a business report.

Each unit introduces business tools and strategies that are particularly relevant to the case study
in that unit. A number of issues concerning leadership and Human Resources’ functions occur in
the Fuzzy Communications case. So, there are exercises that prompt students to consider
SMART (Smart, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Timely) objectives for training programmes,
Management by Walking Around (MBWA), Performance Management, staff fluctuation and
employer branding strategy in their report writing.

Each unit has tips on conducting business meetings or negotiations and giving presentations
with a role play based on the case study in that unit. In Unit 3, students hold a meeting between
Human Resources and the affiliate companies. The aims are to improve communication and open
a dialogue in order to find measures to improve staff fluctuation. In the presentation role play,
students represent Human Resources and present Fuzzy Communications to universities in order
to promote Fuzzy as a future employer and attract the best graduates.

There are tips and exercises on report writing throughout the book. Students are encouraged to
adopt the conventions of business report writing and to consider layout, logic, structure and
organization as well as clear, precise and effective expression. In addition, students are taught
how to use feedback on their writing and to build skills to evaluate their own writing. By the end
of the course, students are able to write a full problem-solution case study report, with an
introduction, full problem analysis, a following section outlining possible solutions to the
problems analyzed and final recommendations.

How do case studies fit into my personal university courses?

The undergraduate degree in Business International Management runs over seven semesters,
with an academic year divided into a winter and summer semester. Bearing in mind the global
trend of adoption of English as a corporate language, Business English is a compulsory subject
for four semesters in the first two years of study. The fifth semester comprises a compulsory
period of study abroad, often in an English speaking country or at a university using English as a
medium of instruction (EMI). Students have the option of completing a project on corporate
communication and culture in the sixth semester and this module is also part of the Business
English programme. An increasing number of modules in other subject areas are taught in
English.

Students have at least a CEFR B2 level in English on starting the degree and are required to
reach a C1 level in Business English by the end of their first year of study. During this year,
students are introduced to the vocabulary and concepts of Business English. This is a phase of
intense learning as first year students often have good or excellent general English skills but
frequently know little about the world of business. Teaching covers fundamental business
subjects, such as organizational structure, the basic internal functions within companies, business
tools and processes. A section on Marketing, for instance, covers the function of a marketing
department within an organization and examination of concepts such as the 4Ps and 7Ps of
marketing.

Case studies are then introduced in the third and fourth semesters and are used as a springboard
for developing communication skills for business report writing, business meetings, negotiations
and presentations. I teach report writing skills in one semester and oral communication skills in
the other. An alternative would be to do the whole book as a course in business communication
over a year, depending on the semester system in your university.

The style and pace of learning changes as the students begin to apply what they have learnt in
their first year of study, not only in Business English but also in other courses. So, students who
have learnt the principles of the 4 and/or 7Ps of marketing begin to discuss business scenarios
and analyze problems and solutions in terms of the 4 or 7Ps. This invariably gives insight into
students’ performance and abilities. Some may have learnt very little in their first year of study,
wrongly assuming that English was a subject that needed little study, so that they have to catch
up with their peers very quickly. Some may have learnt principles by heart achieving high
grades, but find the change of emphasis and practical application extremely challenging. Others
begin to flourish in a new environment in which they can develop practical skills, adapting to a
world that has many shades of gray rather than distinct areas of black and white.

Overall, students later report that practical application of skills greatly assisted them in their
studies abroad when the style of teaching and assessment can be different to that in the home
university. Students who go on to postgraduate studies comment on the benefits of tackling basic
undergraduate case studies when they are required to examine more complex case studies at a
later date. Those who start their careers remark that case studies gave them a head start,
improving their self-confidence and their abilities to work quickly and independently in a
structured and organized manner.